LAHORE: Former Test captain and renowned commentator Ramiz Raja may replace Ehsan Mani as the next chairman of the Pakistan Cricket Board. Ramiz didn’t respond to calls and messages but media reports said that Prime Minister Imran Khan, who is also patron-in-chief of the Board, has decided against giving Mani extension after his term ends this month. “In the next few days, the PM will send two names to the PCB’s Governing Board for the chairman’s election and the members will elect one of them,” a PCB source was quoted as saying on Saturday. The source said while they were hearing the name of Ramiz as one of the two candidates for the prestigious position, nothing was confirmed as yet. The source said initially the names of Mani and Asad Ali Khan, a senior bureaucrat had been mentioned as the two candidates for the chairmanship but now apparently the PM had decided to go for a former captain. “Ramiz appears to be the ideal candidate as he is well educated, well-versed, and has international contacts due to his long years as a commentator. He was also CEO of the board in the past and left due to his other commitments,” the source said.
Apparently Imran Khan, himself a former captain under whom Ramiz played the 1992 World Cup, feels it is time a former player runs the cricket affairs in the country. Another source said Mani had also expressed reluctance to continue for another term due to health issues. The government and the board have already appointed a retired judge, Azmat Sheikh as the election commissioner to conduct the election process for the chairman’s post.
Earlier, Former Pakistan Cricket Board chairperson Najam Sethi had wanted current PCB chairperson Ehsan Mani and CEO Wasim Khan to be removed from their posts. “Prime Minister Imran Khan should take some time and see what was happening with Pakistan cricket,” Sethi had reported as saying in an interview in June, 2021. “People will forget the political failure of the Prime Minister, but will not forget the injustice done to cricket. The media will keep reminding him,” he had said. The former PCB chairperson had said domestic cricket had been ruined because of wrong decisions by the PCB management. “It is not appropriate to shut down anything at once without a better alternative. They have shut down departmental and regional cricket and failed to provide an alternative. Cricket has been devastated at every level now,” he had said.